How to restore a Windows installation or move it to different hardware

INTRODUCTION

One of the following problems may occur with your computer:

Hardware failure

Software failure

Computer theft

Natural disaster

User error

To recover from one of these problems, you can restore the Microsoft Windows operating system from a system state backup. You can restore a system state backup to the same physical computer from which the system state backup was created, or to a different physical computer that has the same make, model, and configuration (identical hardware).

However, we do not support restoring a system state backup from one computer to a second computer of a different make, model, or hardware configuration. We only provide commercially reasonable efforts to support this process. Even if the source and destination computers seem to be identical makes and models, the source computers may have different drivers, hardware, or firmware than the destination computers.

This article describes how to create a system state backup on one computer and how to restore it to the same computer or to a different physical computer of the same make and model.

The preferred method to restore Windows Server 2003 and Windows XP

The preferred method to restore Windows Server 2003 and Windows XP is to use the Automated System Recovery (ASR) feature. ASR automates the whole restore process and produces the most reliable result.

The source computer is defined as the computer that you used to create the system state backup. The destination computer is the computer where you will restore the backup. For more information about how to use ASR, see the following Microsoft Knowledge Base articles:

To restore Windows Server 2008, Windows Server 2008 R2, Windows Vista, and Windows 7-based computers, the preferred method is a full system restore. Specifically, without using ASR, you can perform a Bare Metal Restore (BMR) to freshly formatted boot volumes and system volumes on the same server that the original backup was taken from. In this case, the volume layouts and identifiers are identical to those used during the backup of the original computer. Additionally, you can perform a BMR that uses ASR to a computer that has different hardware than the original computer.

Note BMRs can be performed only when the system is offline.

Note Both the Target machine being backed up and the Destination machine receiving the restore have to be either Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) or BIOS based. You cannot mix the two in a BMR scenario.

In this scenario, you can protect the server by performing a BMR backup of all critical volumes on the server. You then recover the server by performing a BMR recovery through Windows Recovery. In this scenario, BMR is supported to different hardware.

Server malfunction scenario (bootable) or roll back of server roles

In this scenario, you can protect the server by performing a System State Backup or a BMR backup. You would then recover the server by performing a System State Recovery from the started operating system.

System State Recovery after a new installation of Windows Server 2008 or Windows Server 2008 R2 on new hardware or the same hardwareThis kind of recovery is not supported.

Windows Server Backup does not block recovery on a newly-installed operating system. Instead, it warns that this operation is not supported. This feature is used only as a last-ditch support effort to reclaim data from a failed server and is not a supported backup feature.

System State Recovery is only supported on the same operating system instance. It is not supported on a reinstalled operating system on the same or different hardware.

The following table outlines supported and unsupported system recovery scenarios.

Scenario

Supported

System State Recovery to the same instance of Windows Server 2008 or Windows Server 2008 R2

Yes

System State Recovery after BMR / Full Server restore to the same hardware

Yes

System State Recovery after BMR / Full Server restore to different hardware

No

System State Recovery after Full Server restore (without BMR) to the same or different hardware

No

System State Recovery after a new installation of Windows Server 2008 or Windows Server 2008 R2 on new hardware or same hardware

No

Note Windows Server Backup ensures that the system boots successfully after the BMR restore process. Applications/Roles that rely on hardware-specific identifiers like NIC address, and so on, may require additional reconfiguration or recovery to make them functional.

Guidelines for restoring the Windows operating system

Follow the guidelines in the following sections to help make sure that the restore operation succeeds.

Hardware Abstraction Layer

The source and destination computers must use the same type of Hardware Abstraction Layer (HAL). There is one exception to this rule. If one of the computers contains the Advanced Configuration and Power Interface (ACPI) multiprocessor HAL, the other computer can have the ACPI uniprocessor HAL. The same rule applies to MPS multiprocessor and MPS uniprocessor HALs.

For example, if the source is using the MPS multiprocessor HAL, you can restore data to a destination computer that uses the MPS uniprocessor HAL. However, you can't restore data to a destination computer that uses the ACPI multiprocessor HAL.

Note If the destination computer's HAL is compatible, but not identical, to the source computer's HAL, you must update the HAL on the destination computer after you finish the restore. For example, if the source computer has a single processor and is using the ACPI uniprocessor HAL, you can restore a backup from that computer to a multiprocessor destination computer. However, the destination computer will not use more than one processor until you update the HAL to an ACPI multiprocessor HAL.

To determine the computer HAL type that you are using on each computer, follow these steps:

Click Start, point toSettings, click Control Panel, and then clickSystem.

On the Hardware tab, click Device Manager, and then expand the Computer branch.

Operating system version

The source and destination computers must use identical operating system versions and identical Windows stock-keeping units (SKUs). For example, you can't back up Windows 2000 Server and then restore it on a computer that is running Windows 2000 Advanced Server. Also, the source and destination computers should both use retail versions of Windows or the same OEM version of Windows. The best practice is to install Windows on the destination computer by using the same installation media that you used to install Windows on the source computer.

Filter drivers

Uninstall third-party filter drivers on the source computer before you perform the backup. These kinds of drivers can cause problems when the backup is restored to a different computer.

Windows folder and disk layout

The destination computer must use the same logical drive letter (%systemdrive%) and path (%systemroot%) as the source computer. For domain controllers, the locations of the Active Directory directory service database, Active Directory log files, FRS database, and FRS log files must also be identical for the source and destination computers. For example, if the Active Directory database log files on the source computer were installed on C:\WINNT\NTDS, the destination computer must also use the C:\WINNT\NTDS path.

Hardware

If you remove any hardware on the destination computer that is not required to complete the restore process, you increase the probability of a successful restore operation. For example, physically remove or disable all except one network adapter. Install or enable the additional adapters after you restart the operating system after the restore operation.

Hotfix and service pack level

For Windows 2000 computers, hotfix 810161 or Windows 2000 Service Pack 4 must be installed on the source computer before you back up data. These items must also be installed on the destination computer before you restore the backup. Windows Server 2003 and Windows XP have no hotfix or service pack level requirements for this kind of restore operation.

A user does not have to bring the destination computer up to the same service pack and hotfix level for Windows Server 2003 or for Windows XP. However, restoring a Windows Server 2003 SP1-based computer requires you to restore the destination computer to Windows Server 2003 SP1. If you do not do this, you will receive the following error message:

Windows could not start because of an error in the software

For more information about the error message that you receive when you restore a Windows Server 2003 Service Pack 1-based backup on a Windows Server 2003-based computer, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

914049 Error message when you restore a Windows Server 2003 Service Pack 1-based backup on a Windows Server 2003-based computer: "Windows could not start because of an error in the software"

Move a Windows client or member server installation

Move Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008

For client and member server computers, follow these steps to back up the Windows Vista or Windows Server 2008 installation and restore it to a different computer.

Note A member server is any server that is not a domain controller.

Note The following requirements must be met to move Windows Vista or Windows Server 2008 to a different computer.

Hard disk:

Startup hard disk capacity should be larger or the same size. Even if it is smaller by a single byte, BMR will be blocked.

BMR supports IDE, SATA, or SCSI hard disks. You can make the backup on one kind of hard disk and recover on another kind of hard disk. For example, IDE to SCSI is supported.

You should make sure that your RAID setup on the destination computer does not interfere with the boot order of the hard disks.

The operating system architecture and processor architecture must match. The three architectures, x86, x64, and IA-64, support the following scenarios:

Backup of an x86 operating system version: This backup can be restored to an x86 processor computer or to an x64 processor computer.

Backup of an x64 operating system version: This backup can be restored only to an x64 processor computer.

Backup of an IA-64 (Itanium) operating system version: This backup can be restored only to an IA-64 computer.

Additionally, the architecture of WinRE or the Setup CD should match the architecture of the operating system that is being recovered. For example, you would use an x86 version WinRE CD to restore an x86 operating system on an x86 computer.

You can treat AMD or Intel processors as being the same if they follow the same architecture. The backup of AMD x64 computer's operating system can be recovered on to an Intel x64 computer, or vice a versa.

Recovery to Startup disk only: The recovery process will restore the backup to the first hard disk in the BIOS boot order. You cannot change to another hard disk to restore the operating system.

Back up and restore Windows Vista

To back up and restore Windows Vista, follow these steps:

On the source computer, log on by using the administrator account, and then stop all noncritical services and services that you typically stop before you perform a backup. This may include any service that puts locks on files. This includes antivirus, disk scanning, and indexing services.

On the source computer, verify that the TCP/IP start value is set to 1. This value is located in the following registry subkey:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Tcpip

Value name

Start

Value type

REG_DWORD

Value data

1

On the source computer, create a complete backup of the computer.

Note If you back up the computer to a hard disk, you will have to either move that disk to the destination server, or you will have to share that hard disk over the network if it is possible to do so.

Click Start, type Backup and Restore Center in the Start Search box, and then press Enter.

Click Backup Computer.

In the Where do you want to save your backup window, click One or more DVDs, and then click Next.

In the Which file types do you want to backup window, select all the check boxes, and then click Next.

Click Start backup.

Start the destination computer from the installation disc into the Windows Recovery Environment (WinRE). You must use an installation disc that contains Windows Vista Service Pack 1 because the release version of Windows Vista does not support this scenario.

Restore the backup to the destination computer.

To restore from a backup DVD, follow these steps:

Start the computer from the Windows Vista installation DVD.

Click Repair your computer.

Click Complete PC Restore.

Select the operating system that you want to repair. If you are restoring to a blank hard disk, no operating systems are listed.

Remove the Windows Vista Installation DVD, and then insert the first backup DVD.

Click Windows Complete PC Restore, and then follow the instructions.

To restore from a hard drive, follow these steps:

Install the hard disk on the destination computer.

Start the computer from the Windows Vista installation DVD.

Click Repair your computer.

Select the operating system that you want to repair. If you are restoring to a blank hard disk, no operating systems are listed.

Click Windows Complete PC Restore, and then follow the instructions.

Restart the computer, and then verify that it is functioning correctly.

If the restored computer was a member computer of a domain, test the security channel by using the NLTEST command:

NLTEST /SC_QUERY:DomainName

If SC_QUERY reports a failure condition, reset the security channel by using the following command:

NLTEST /SC_RESET:DomainName

If the destination computer is a member computer, you may have to reset its security channel with the domain, depending on how recently the backup occurred. When you run the netdom query trust /verify command, the security channel relationship test will fail if the security channel is broken. For more information about how to use the netdom tool, see the Netdom article on the Microsoft website.

If the trust relationship test fails and indicates a failed security channel, you can run the netdom command on the destination computer to reset the channel. The netdom command is also available in the Support Tools. To reset the security channel, use the following netdom command:

Note In this command, Destination computer represents the destination computer, domain_name represents the name of the domain, admin_user represents the user who is a member of the administrator group, and admin_user_password represents the password of the user account.

Recover Windows Server 2008

To recover a Windows Server 2008 installation, follow the steps in the following Microsoft TechNet article:

Move Windows Server 2003, Windows XP, and Windows 2000

For client and member server computers, follow these steps to back up the Windows installation and restore it to a different computer. (A member server is any server that is not a domain controller.)

On the source computer, log on by using the administrator account, and then stop all noncritical services and services that you typically stop before you perform a backup. This may include any service that puts locks on files. This includes antivirus, disk scanning, and indexing services.

On the source computer, verify that the TCP/IP start value is set to 1. This value is located in the following registry subkey:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Tcpip

Value Name

Start

Value Type

REG_DWORD

Value Data

1

On the source computer, use Windows Backup to back up the system drive, the system drive subfolders, and the system state.

On the destination computer, perform a new installation of Windows by using the same operating system version as the source computer. Make sure that you install the operating system in the same drive and path that was used on the source computer. For example, if Windows is installed to C:\WINNT on the source, you must install to the same location on the destination computer.

After the new installation is complete, log on to the destination computer as Administrator. By using Disk Management, create, format, and assign drive letters to any additional volumes that may be required to hold a system state component. Make sure that all drive letters match those of the source computer. Disk space for volumes on the destination computer should be as least as large as corresponding volumes on the source.

On the destination computer, create a C:\Backup folder. Put a copy of the C:\Boot.ini file and the whole %systemroot%\Repair folder, including all its subfolders, in the C:\Backup folder for use in step 8. The Boot.ini file is in the root of the system partition (typically, C:\Boot.ini). The Repair folder is generally in the C:\WINNT\Repair folder or in the C:\WINDOWS\Repair folder.

To restore the backup on the destination computer, follow these steps:

Click Start, clickRun, type ntbackup, and then click OK.

On the Tools menu, clickOptions, click the Restore tab, and then click Always replace the file on my computer.

Restore the system state from the backup that you performed earlier. Make sure that you select the option to restore to the original location.

Note To have access to all removable media (tape or magneto-optical disk) from the source computer after the restore operation is complete, you must click Restore Removable Storage Database under theAdvanced button before you start the restore operation.

After the restore operation is complete, but before you restart the destination computer, follow these steps:

Copy the Boot.ini file from the C:\Backup folder that you created in step 6. Copy the Repair folder and its subfolders from the C:\Backup folder to the %systemroot%\Repair folder.

Verify that the source computer is either turned off, disconnected from the network, or has been reinstalled by using a different computer name and IP address. (If the source computer had a static IP address, the destination computer will have that same static IP address after the restore operation.)

Restart the computer, and then verify that it is functioning correctly.

If the restored computer was a member computer or member server, test the security channel by using the NLTEST command:

NLTEST /SC_QUERY:<DomainName>

If SC_QUERY reports a failure condition, reset the security channel by using the following command:

NLTEST /SC_RESET:<DomainName>

If the destination computer is a member computer or member server, you may have to reset its security channel with the domain, depending on how recently the backup occurred. When you run the netdiag /test:trust command, the security channel relationship test will fail if the security channel is broken. The netdiag command is available when you install the Support Tools on the Windows installation media.

If the trust relationship test fails and indicates a failed security channel, you can run the netdom command on the destination computer to reset the channel. The netdom command is also available in the Support Tools. To reset the security channel, use the following netdom command:

Note Destination computer is the destination computer, domain_name is the name of the domain, admin_user is the user who is a member of the administrator group, and admin_user_password is the password of the user account.

Move a Windows domain controller installation

Warning The following procedure is intended for failure recovery or hardware replacement of a single domain when no other domain controllers are available. If there are other healthy domain controllers online for the domain, we recommend that you do not perform a restore at all. Instead, perform a new installation of Windows on the destination computer and run the Active Directory Installation Wizard (Dcpromo.exe) to make the installation a replica in an existing domain.

Move Windows Server 2008

Note The following requirements must be met to move Windows Server 2008 to a different computer.

Hard disk:

Startup hard disk capacity should be larger or same size. Even if it is smaller by a single byte, BMR will be blocked.

BMR supports IDE, SATA, or SCSI hard disks. You can make the backup on one kind of hard disk and recover on another kind of hard disk. For example, IDE to SCSI is supported.

You should make sure that your RAID setup on destination computer does not interfere with the boot order of the hard disks.

The operating system architecture and processor architecture must match. The three architectures, x86, x64, and IA-64, support the following scenarios:

Backup of an x86 operating system version: This backup can be restored to an x86 processor computer or to an x64 processor computer.

Backup of an x64 operating system version: This backup can be restored only to an x64 processor computer.

Backup of an IA-64 (Itanium) operating system version: This backup can be restored only to an IA-64 computer.

Additionally, the architecture of WinRE or Setup CD should match architecture of the operating system being recovered. For example, you would use an x86 version WinRE CD to restore an x86 operating system on an x86 computer.

You can treat AMD or Intel processors as being the same, if they follow the same architecture. The backup of AMD x64 computer's operating system can be recovered on to an Intel x64 computer or vice a versa.

Recovery to Startup Disk only: The recovery process will restore the backup to the first had disk in the BIOS boot order. You cannot change to another hard disk to restore the operating system.

To back up and restore a Windows Server 2008 domain controller installation, follow the steps in the following TechNet article:

Move Windows Server 2003, Windows XP, or Windows 2000

On the source computer, log on by using the administrator account, and then stop all noncritical services and services that you typically stop before you perform a backup. This may include any service that puts locks on files. This includes antivirus, disk scanning, and indexing services.

On the source computer, verify that the TCP/IP start value is set to 1. This value is located in the following registry subkey:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Tcpip

Value Name

Start

Value Type

REG_DWORD

Value Data

1

Use the Windows backup tool to back up the system drive and the system state. For Windows 2000, if Sysvol resides on a drive other than the system drive, you must also back up that folder and all subfolders. For example, if Sysvol is located in the D:\Sysvol folder, you must back up the system drive, the system state, and the D:\Sysvol folder.

Perform a new installation of Windows on the destination computer by using the same version of Windows as the source computer. Make sure that you install Windows to the same location as on the source computer. For example, if Windows is installed to the C:\WINNT folder on the source, you must install Windows to the same location on the destination.

After the new installation is complete, log on to the destination computer as an administrator. By using Disk Management, create, format, and assign drive letters to any additional volumes that may be required to hold a system state component or an application. Make sure that all drive letters match those of the source computer.

On the destination computer, create a C:\Backup folder. Put a copy of the Boot.ini file in that folder, in the %systemroot%\Repair folder, and in all the subfolders of the Repair folder. The Boot.ini file is in the root of the system partition. (This folder is typically the C:\Boot.ini folder.) The Repair folder is typically in the C:\WINNT\Repair folder or in the C:\WINDOWS\Repair folder.

If the source computer is the only domain controller for the domain, reinstall Windows on the source computer, or disconnect it from the network, before you restore the backup to the destination computer. We recommend those steps, because it is too easy for someone to turn the source computer back on. If someone turns on the source computer, name conflicts or other problems with the destination computer occur.

If the source computer is not the only domain controller for the domain, use the Active Directory Installation Wizard to remove Active Directory from the source computer. Then, either reinstall Windows on the source computer, or disconnect it from the network .

When you have confirmed that the source computer and the restored destination computer are not online at the same time, restore the backup by following these steps:

Click Start, click Run, type ntbackup, and then clickOK.

On the Tools menu, clickOptions, click the Restore tab, and then click Always replace the file on my computer.

Restore the system state and the system drive from the backup that you performed earlier. For Windows 2000, you must also manually select the Sysvol folder to be restored. The system state includes Sysvol. However, there is an issue in Windows 2000 that prevents the Sysvol junction points from being restored correctly if you restore only the system state. Make sure that you select the option to restore to Original location.

After the restore operation is complete, but before you restart the destination computer, follow these steps:

Replace the Boot.ini file and the %systemroot%\Repair folder that has the copies that you made in step 6.

In the TCP/IP settings, verify that the computer is configured to use a Domain Name System (DNS) server that is authoritative for the domain and that is currently online. Do not configure the server to use itself for DNS because the DNS records in the backup may no longer be valid. When the restore operation is complete, and when you have verified that the destination computer is functioning correctly, you can configure the server to use itself for DNS.

If the destination computer will be the first or only domain controller for the domain, follow these steps to authoritatively restore the File Replication Service (FRS). This step must also be complete before the first restart after the restore operation is complete.

Warning Do not follow these steps if there are existing domain controllers in the domain.

ExpandReplica Sets, and then identify the subkey that refers to the replica set DOMAIN SYSTEM VOLUME (SYSVOL SHARE).

Find the subkey of the Cumulative Replica Sets subkey that matches the name of the subkey from the previous step.

ExpandCumulative Replica Sets, click the subkey that represents the Sysvol replica set, and then double-click BurFlags.

In the Edit DWORD Value dialog box, type D4, and then click OK.

Restart the computer.

Restart the computer and verify that it is functioning correctly by using the dcdiag and netdiag commands. For more information about how to use the dcdiag command, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

If there are existing domain controllers in the domain, you may have to reset its security channel, depending on how recently the backup occurred. If the security channel is broken, the netdiag /test:trust command will indicate that the trust relationship test failed. If the trust relationship test result indicates that the test was skipped, you can safely ignore the results. This result indicates that the computer that you are running the test on has the PDC emulator operation master role.

If the trust relationship test fails, you have a failed security channel. To fix this, run the netdom command on the destination computer to reset the security channel. To reset the security channel on a domain controller by using the netdom command, follow these steps:

Stop the Kerberos Key Distribution Center (KDC) service, and set it to Manual startup.

Note replication_partner_server_name is the name of the replication partner server. The command must be running locally on the destination computer.

Restart the computer, start the KDC, and then set it back to Automatic startup.

Make sure that you verify that replication is working if there are existing domain controllers in the domain. For more information about how to verify replication, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

Possible issues and the steps to troubleshoot

After you restart the destination computer, you may experience the following symptoms:

You receive one of the following Stop error messages:

Stop 0x0000007B Inaccessible_Boot_Device

STOP: 0x00000079 Hal_Mismatch

The computer stops responding at startup.

The computer that is running Windows Server 2008 crashes on startup. This occurs when the source HAL and the target HAL do not match.

The computer spontaneously restarts when you receive the following message on a black screen early in the restart process:

Starting Windows 2000

You cannot configure your display settings.

The network adapter does not function correctly.

To resolve issues with the display settings or with a network adapter, remove the graphics adapter or the network adapter from Device Manager, and then restart the computer. Windows will redetect the device and possibly prompt you for drivers.

315341 How to perform an in-place upgrade (reinstallation) of Windows XP

After you finish the in-place upgrade, verify that the ClientProtocols registry subkey exists and is populated correctly. To do this, follow these steps:

Click Start, click Run, type regedit, and then click OK.

Locate and then right-click the following registry subkey. Verify that the values in the following list exist:HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Rpc\ClientProtocols

Value name

Value type

Value data

ncacn_ip_tcp

REG_SZ

rpcrt4.dll

ncacn_ip_udp

REG_SZ

rpcrt4.dll

ncacn_nb_tcp

REG_SZ

rpcrt4.dll

ncacn_np

REG_SZ

rpcrt4.dll

If the ClientProtocols subkey itself is missing, add it under the Rpc subkey.

If values are missing in theClientProtocols subkey, follow these steps:

Right-click ClientProtocols, point to New, and then click String Value.

Type the value name of the entry that is missing, and then press Enter.

Right-click the value name that you typed in step B, and then click Modify.

Type the appropriate value data for the value name that you typed in step B, and then click OK.

Repeat step 4 for each missing value in theClientProtocolssubkey.

Restart the computer if any registry changes were made.

Note If the source computer was upgraded from Windows NT 4.0, the user profiles may be stored in the %systemroot%\Profiles folder instead of in the %systemdrive%\Documents and Settings folder. After an in-place upgrade is performed, you may have to change the following registry value back to %systemroot%\Profiles.

Microsoft provides third-party contact information to help you find technical support. This contact information may change without notice. Microsoft does not guarantee the accuracy of this third-party contact information.